Lafayette Man Pleads Guilty to Bomb Threat, Bank Robbery Charges

Lafayette Man Pleads Guilty to Bomb Threat, Bank Robbery Charges

LAFAYETTE, LA—United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a Lafayette man pleaded guilty to making a bomb threat and attempting to rob a bank.

Devin Haywood, 31, of Lafayette, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard T. Haik to one count of using a facility in interstate commerce to willfully make a threat or maliciously convey false information, and one count of attempted bank robbery. According to the indictment, Haywood used a cell phone to make a bomb threat at 5:30 a.m. on July 16, 2014, to a local television station that there was a bomb at Girard Park in Lafayette and on the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus. While law enforcement agents were investigating the bomb threat, Haywood attempted to rob a bank on Moss Street in Lafayette. Haywood approached two of the bank employees after they had arrived for work at the bank. He appeared to be carrying a gun. The two bank employees fled back to their vehicles and left the scene.

Haywood faces 10 years in prison and three years of supervised release for the bomb threat charge. He faces 20 years in prison and five years of supervised release for the attempted bank robbery charge. Both charges carry a fine of up to $250,000. A sentencing date was not set.

“Actions of this defendant created a very dangerous situation within the city of Lafayette,” Finley stated. “Law enforcement, emergency responders and others were called away from other important work to respond to a fabricated bomb threat so that this individual could attempt to rob a financial institution. He is now facing the consequences of his actions. I want to thank the law enforcement agencies that responded professionally and promptly to this incident.”

The FBI, ATF, U.S. Marshals Service, Louisiana State Police, Lafayette Police Department, Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Luke Walker is prosecuting the case.